Stuart Lancaster is bracing himself for the loss of fly-half Owen Farrell for
the RBS Six Nations match against Italy at Twickenham a week on Sunday.

The England head coach, who rates Farrell’s chances of recovering from a thigh strain as no better than 50-50, also revealed on Thursday that he had warned the squad about getting involved in incidents during a match that might affect their performance. Farrell was in feisty mood against France last weekend and was embroiled in several exchanges.

Lancaster attributed that behaviour in part to Farrell’s frustration with the quad problem which eventually forced him off around the hour. The England head coach dismissed the notion that Farrell’s game was unduly affected by the minor skirmishes and stated that discipline “is not a big issue” for his team.

Farrell’s injury, though, has caused Lancaster to hold back both bench replacements, Toby Flood and Billy Twelvetrees, from Aviva Premiership action this weekend as he looks to cover his options in the event of Farrell not passing muster when the squad reconvene on Monday night.

The matter in hand is not so much his ability to run but to kick. Lancaster indicated that he would err on the side of caution with the injury, especially with the potential Grand Slam game against Wales coming six days after the Italy match.

“The issue will come when he has to kick,” said Lancaster as the squad broke camp after three days together. “We have to make sure that it’s healed properly so that it doesn’t break down again through kicking. Being a fly-half, that’s obviously an important part of the job. We’ll give him time, but equally there comes a point in a week when we run combinations.

“You have to let the injury settle to a point where he’s beyond fit enough to run. Running around is fine, but what you don’t want to do is return to kicking too early and return the injury to its current state. There’s no such thing as breaking yourself in as a fly-half, you’re either fit or not. If there’s a risk of him breaking down, we wouldn’t risk him.”

Lancaster has the resources at his disposal not to fret unduly. Flood, whom Farrell replaced when the Leicester fly-half picked up an injury prior to the game against New Zealand, since when he has gone from strength to strength, has been in good form.

Freddie Burns, who made his debut when coming on for Farrell for the final 16 minutes against the All Blacks, plays his first game in six weeks for Gloucester against Bath tonight. He too will be back in the mix, with both Twelvetrees and Alex Goode also able to cover the position.

Even though there would be a temptation to rest some players for what ought to be a straightforward encounter against Italy, Lancaster revealed that he intended to keep the match-day squad intact. Any changes will be strategic or reward for perseverance.

“There won’t be wholesale changes,” said Lancaster. “We’ll be consistent with selection. One or two people have waited patiently [such as] scrum-half Danny Care and prop Mako Vunipola.”

The England squad are in fine fettle and have been taken aback by criticism that they may have been beyond the pale in terms of their on-field behaviour against France.

“We definitely got involved in one or two incidents that we didn’t need to,” said Lancaster. “As an opposition coach you’ve got to do everything in your power to upset or niggle the opposition. You have to be able to deal with that. Champion sides don’t get sidetracked by the niggle.”

As for Farrell, he said: “It is about hitting the balance between being on the edge and in control, or not quite being on the edge and getting blown away by a side that is hugely motivated. I never felt with Owen but that his game management was good. I don’t think it affected his performance. I have no long-term concerns about his temperament. If anything, his strength is his temperament.”

Lancaster praised under-fire wing Chris Ashton, although he did acknowledge that the player “was disappointed with the try conceded”.

“I have to make sure I keep positive with him because he is a good player for us,” said Lancaster. “We are not going to lose that confidence in Chris. We all know we can do better.”

Lancaster has released 10 players back to their clubs, including two of those who started against France, hooker Dylan Hartley and flanker Courtney Lawes. Wasps No 8 Billy Vunipola has resumed training and is available for selection against Italy. It is hoped that No 8 Ben Morgan will be fit for the Wales game.